Author Gary Dorrien discusses his new book on the religious roots of social democracy. He describes how 19th and early 20th century Christians in Europe, Britain and the US laid the foundation of the ideology that would dominate western politics for 40 years after WWII - and why it's making a comeback.

Queensland painter Wayne Malkin claims a record for creating the world's smallest painting on the end of a matchstick, but he won't make it into the record books.

Building an artificial reef could be the key to stabilising a popular beach at Queensland's Inskip Point that suffers from repeated landslips, a geotechnical expert says.

A local politician's stab at finding romance on reality television could backfire, as the Noosa Mayor considers a code of conduct probe into Councillor Jess Glasgow.

In Central Australia, butterflies have only several weeks in certain months to pollinate flowering plants in the desert region, making their presence there crucial.

While the death and disease threats from COVID 19 during the pandemic period are huge, the devastation to the global and local economies are also enormous and there's plenty of research to inform what the effects will be on health, wellbeing and life expectancy.

New modelling shows a proposal to create a national body for research and innovation in the forestry sector would create hundreds of jobs in Western Australia's south.

A Dubbo man is handed a community correction order and community service after pleading guilty to animal cruelty following his appearance in a video of an emu being plucked.

The magistrate who sentenced a man over the assault of a champion surfer says she took into account the public scolding he's received when deciding his punishment.

The hunt for the missing Belgian backpacker, who disappeared after a night out on May 31, is formally referred to the NSW coroner in a move that ends the official police search.

From phoning war widows and having a chat to ease isolation, to walking a service dog down the driveway, younger veterans are finding creative ways to make this Anzac Day count.

For Country Women's Association secretary and cookery judge Pam Wright, whose uncle died a POW and whose father succumbed to his war injuries, Anzac biscuits mean more than just a delicious treat.

The residents of short-term accommodation in Cairns West may struggle to find affordable housing after the complex they call home is shut down next month.

Experts don't know what causes it or why, but a virus that spreads quickly in close contact is causing rainbow lorikeets to "drop out of the sky" across South-East Queensland.

Friends, cake, presents and games are all essential experiences for a kid's birthday party, but in recent times these celebrations have been a casualty. One mum shares how she's throwing her son a virtual birthday party.

ABC North Coast resident arts reviewer, Jeanti St Clair looks at the latest music and theatre to hit the region.

Melbourne Storm winger Josh Addo-Carr and the South Sydney Rabbitoh's fullback Latrell Mitchell post an apology on their social media accounts after footage emerged of the NRL players on a camping holiday with around 10 other men. The trip prompted a NSW Police investigation.

Tributes flow from across the political divide after Ian Causley, one of the NSW North Coast's longest serving members of Parliament, dies aged 79.

Police find NRL player Nathan Cleary committed no offence after videos emerged of a group of women at his home, but the five women have been slugged with $1,000 fines.

On March 31, the Premier enacted stricter social-distancing measures "for our own good" — here's how people in Australia's worst-affected coronavirus state survived, and thrived amid the lockdown.

A NSW Health official breaks down in tears while apologising for the government department's failures in dealing with the Ruby Princess coronavirus outbreak, an inquiry hears.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and Dr Kerry Chant provided an updated on coronavirus for May 6. NSW has confirmed nine new cases of COVID-19 overnight.

NSW Health Minister Brad Hazzard urges people to continue to observe social distancing measures on Mother's Day.

The water watchdog says it is investigating claims that irrigators in the Namoi Valley pumped water out of the river system during a recent embargo.

A lack of detox beds in large regional centres is preventing people from getting rehab, a special commission of inquiry into ice hears.

Tasmania confirms eight more cases of coronavirus, bringing the state's tally to 36, as another college ends classroom teaching, citing "mixed and uncertain medical health advice within the community and from various public health authorities".

Medical staff working in a coronavirus hotspot in Tasmania's north-west say a relaxed attitude towards hand hygiene and social distancing made it a "slow-motion disaster waiting to happen".

Firefighters are battling to stop a large bushfire from destroying the tinder-dry Ramsar-protected Macquarie Marshes in western New South Wales.

Ciaron Maher and David Eustace are looking to turn their unorthodox training partnership into big success at Melbourne's Spring Carnival.

Liberal backbencher Dave Sharma and Labor MP Josh Burns join forces with alleged victims to seek Malka Leifer's extradition to Australia to face child sexual abuse charges.

Six formerly homeless women bring their stories to the stage in Melbourne in a play they hope will galvanise the community to demand politicians invest more in social housing.

Controversial cartoonist Michael Leunig is accused of unfairly judging mothers in a cartoon that suggests some love their phones and Instagram more than their children.

A woman who worked as a financial officer at the since-failed SKM Recycling has been sentenced to six months' jail after siphoning more than $168,000 from the business into her own accounts.

For the second time in two days, Victoria Police expresses "extreme disappointment" in one of its officers, this time after alt-right material shared on social media was connected to an officer accused of using a hand gesture associated with white power.

Whips will likely be banned from horseracing in the next 10 to 15 years, the CEO of Racing Victoria says, as rain and animal activists dampen the annual Melbourne Cup parade.

Meredith Ireland has spent the last six years studying and working in the finance sector, but recently she has decided to put more time into her passion, textiles and weaving.

On any given day in the small rural New South Wales town of Trundle, up to a dozen men can be found in an historic garage, tinkering on cars, passing on skills to younger men and taking turns pumping fuel. It's an interesting set up, but it works.

The athletes do get a little competitive with each other from time to time but at the Barcaldine Elder Olympics the main aim of the game is socialising. The small outback Queensland town has held the event for 21 years with dozens of older residents travelling from nearby towns to compete.

Lyndhurst is a tiny village set amid rolling green hills in central west New South Wales but it's just produced a world champion who is the latest in a long and proud tradition of country rifle shooting.

Bright minds are being encouraged to consider jobs in fashion, rather than traditional STEM careers such as engineering and mathematics.

Humans get exercise in many ways, including training and competing with their dogs in agility trials. So is it time the competition is officially recognised as a sport?

A prominent urban researcher warns that Ballarat is heading towards a "social disaster" unless it can curb urban sprawl.

Every night Allanah Morel packs her daughter's school bag ahead of time because she knows that by the next morning she could be in too much pain to get out of bed.

University researcher Katie Gaskin has completed a detailed study into breast anatomy that could bring far-reaching benefits for fields like cancer treatment, cosmetic surgery, and even bra design.